A Saiyan Tooth
by prisma-bug
Summary: A/U. Character sketch. One shot. Raditz has been driven from his home, only to curb a hankering for cake.


**A Saiyan Tooth**

Wind whipped his long hair into a flourish of spikes and tendrils; it smelled something like dirt and clean water and pollen. Nothing had ever smelled so clean on Vegetasei, the air has always held the twinges of blood at its edges. But, Raditz thought, that was to be expected. A warrior race bathed in blood, and sometimes even went as far as to wear great blotches of it for days. Those blotches were trophies. He could vaguely remember wearing blood after his first planet purge, but that had been years ago. He had only been the Earth equivalent of twelve and the purple blood had stained his skin from chin to thigh. He could remember the pride he felt as he washed away what hadn't flaked off. That had been before Freiza had destroyed the planet and forced himself, Nappa, and Vegeta into servitude. Plant purging had lost its dark red luster; becoming a chore rather than a privilege. Below, Raditz could see the leafy treetops giving way to carefully mowed grass and the outskirts of the small cities.

After living on Earth for the past year he finally understood why his brother loved the planet. There were trees that bloomed rather than became gnarled and leafless, no sands that billowed endlessly under a molten sky, and no constant volcanic eruptions. No, Earth was some sort of planetary anomaly with its blue sky and breathing landscape. The humans weren't so bad either. Although, and he admitted it more than he would have liked to, he missed the familiarity of saiyan bodies. Most humans were soft and weak, with the exception of Kakarott's friends. He missed the bronzy sheen of saiyan skin and their angular features. Human women also boggled his mind. He had quickly learned that there were very few human females who cared about their fighting prowess, most spending their time in small attempts to reveal the musculature under their soft flesh. Saiyan women's muscles were naturally visible, and they never strived for physical appearance. There was also no reason to be gentle with saiyan women. The Prince and Kakarrot had explained to both he and Nappa that human women were easily broken, in a literal way.

Nappa had found a female though. She was what Earthlings called a boxer, Nappa having seen her smack around the competition at an event the Prince's woman insisted that they go to. She was an exception by human standards. Her muscles strained as she pummeled the other woman, and they were impressive. Once she had taken off the mask that covered her face there was no denying that she was attractive, in a saiyan way. Her mouth curved into a victory smirk before she spat on the opponent and her eyes flashed in a way that was reminiscent of Nappa's former mate. Nappa had placed a proverbial claim on her, and pursued it. And the pursuit of Momo is what had driven Raditz out of the small capsule home he shared with Nappa.

Saiyan 'dating' was something that Raditz was only familiar with in a vague sense. He knew enough to back away from Nappa's claim, but hadn't realized what living with a hormonal saiyan would be like. Nappa and Momo were in the final stages of their courtship. Or, Raditz prayed to Kakarott's Kami that they were, because, if they were not, he would consider the offer placed by his brother's harpy, to "share a room with Gohan".

As he flew, the wind shifted direction and translated the scent he had been searching for. Earth food was much better than what he had eaten on Freiza's ship, and there had been nothing like the 'dessert' that the Earthling's offered after meals. Kakarrot had shown him a human enterprise that specialized in 'dessert', cake especially. Human coins weighted down the front of his pants, he earned them by working with the blue haired human, Bulma, on a much improved form of space craft. Not only did she provide coins, she also provided the capsule home, clothing, training space, and food for both he and Nappa. In return, Raditz supplied extensive knowledge of alien planets and technology while Nappa acted in the capacity of head of security, often hoisting the blue-haired woman's father on his shoulders to avoid the press.

The wind pressed heavily against his nose and he narrowed his eyes as they scanned for the familiar blue building called The Sweet Shoppe. And it was only a small bit ahead, jutting out on a corner. He lowered his speed and began his descent. After landing, he took long strides into the shop, where the smells of chocolate and dried fruit assaulted his sensitive nose. The old human behind the counter smiled as he approached the counter. Her silver hair was coiffed carefully about her head and her mouth was deeply lined. Raditz had never seen a creature so old. No saiyan ever lived to have hair the color of moonlight.

"How may I help you?", the old woman asked politely as she gaged his size. Raditz ignored her as he roved dark eyes over the contents of the glass cases. There were huge pies oozing with berry fillings, monster cookies, delicate cupcakes with sugar flowers, and massive chocolate cakes studded with almonds. The chocolate cake was the only thing that Raditz ever ordered. "The same thing you always want?" ,the old lady asked while squinting her eyes to gather a better look. "I made a special one for you today," the woman turned her face away to scream towards a doorway behind her, "Minna, bring that cake from the fridge."

From the doorway came a rush of clacking pots and pans, followed by a shout of pain. Raditz watched the old woman sigh before refocusing his attention on the doorway. He found it odd that he had never noticed another working in the store. He found it equally disturbing that the woman had familiarized herself with him. He didn't like it. Shuffling footsteps echoed in his sensitive ears, and came to a halt as the other person emerged from the darkened back of the bakery, Raditz had to stifle laughter.

The woman was far younger than her counter-part at the register. Flour ran races along the bridge of her nose and squirreled away in the inky black of her hair. Rage flitted behind her eyes and flared in the hollows of her cheeks, staining them an unpleasant shade of crimson. Raditz took note of the way her flesh cleaved to her bones as she struggled to place the cake onto the counter. There was no muscle to her, no fat either. Nothing, really. Something about her lack of substantiality made his stomach churn; nothing should look so ravenous. But, her obvious lack of physicality did not affect her mouth.

"Here is the damn thing," She swept blue eyes over Raditz, who glared back with equal intensity, "You must be something special. Iko doesn't usually make such nice cakes for normal people."

Raditz shoved a hand into his pocket, feeling the coins and thrusting the appropriate amount towards the old lady. Iko held her hands up in suppliance, indicating that she did not wish to be paid. "You've paid me enough, enjoy this one for free."

The other woman snorted laughter before turning back to the doorway, carefully roaming eyes meeting Raditz's in a taut gaze. Raditz could feel something boiling in his blood. It wasn't quite rage, and it wasn't lust. It was a need to better the woman who could look at him in such a way. The need to frighten her to her place beneath him. He snatched the cake off of the counter and left the door to the bakery broken in his wake. He felt up for a challenge.

**AN:** So, this is a character sketch for my alternate universe. I like pairing up villains with characters: my own, others, or cannon. Feedback is greatly appreiciated!


End file.
